Serendipity
by rinappe
Summary: Perfection. How long will it take Okuno Hosomichi to achive that? (Okuno Hosomichi Centric for inazuma-eleven-translations)


It had been so long since Okuno Hosomichi felt happiness, or any emotion for that matter. He'd forgotten what it was like to look forward to the next day, to see the wonder in the mornings, and to enjoy the peaceful evenings. To find joy in the smallest things, to find excitement in others, to be truly alive. That was life before the Ares program.

Okuno was a bright young child, for one at age 5. He could already read basic kanji, do multiplication and division, and the list went on. As if his academics were not impressive enough, his athleticism was even better. He was often found outdoors, playing with a ball, a racket or even just dashing around.

This talented child also had a most admirable attitude, simple and humble. Always thinking about others before himself, he helped them with those talents of his and never requested for compensation. Sometimes, there were times where he had predicted misfortunes before they had happened and prevented them. That earned him the nickname of the Wabisabi Clairvoyant; the humble savior of the neighborhood.

Few disliked the young boy, for he was like the sky. Endlessly full of hope, no matter how far one looked into it. His navy blue hair was wild like the sea, mysterious yet striking azure eyes that lured many towards him and a gentle smile that melted others. He was perfect, in so many different ways.

Yet, Okuno himself could never see himself that way. Was he already at the point where he could no longer improve himself? Would this be the only Okuno others would know about?

He felt there was something missing in his so-called "perfect" self. He wasn't worthy of this praise at all. He wanted to be capable of more, to be able to reach out to more people and bring hope to them like he did to those around him. It wasn't enough for him, he wasn't "perfect" enough.

And then he met the Ares Program. With a promise of a better world, of a better person.

"Mama, would I be able to become better if I joined this Ares program?" he queried, eyes hopeful of becoming more than he currently is.

He never needed to worry about being accepted in; they had recruited him in just a few days.

"Straight As in school, exceptional sports prowess, and of course," they held his face and tilted it in various positions for observation. It made Okuno hesitate on the choice he was going to make.

"A pretty face."

And that's when all his bright, colorful days ended. By requirement of the program, he was to make no contact with those outside of it, stripped of all "distractions" and was only allowed to do what the higher authorities told him to do.

 _Boring._

Everyday was the same. Wake up, dress up, go to class, Ares program, train, sleep, repeat. Everything was perfectly planned, from the amount of time they were to take dressing up, to the last second of sleep they got. There were no changes, no fun, they were living robots.

 _Dull._

The boy's blue drained as the days passed. Navy hair deepened to the color of a dark abyss, azure eyes grayed to a gravestone, a blank smile that spoke little to none. Gone was the endless blue sky came a storm cloud of unknown.

Okuno would look in a mirror and not recognize himself. Who was that? Was that who he was?

"I am Okuno Hosomichi," he would murmur to himself. "This is all for perfection."

 _Perfect._

That's who he was. That's what he was striving for. Nothing less.

So why did it feel so empty?

"Okuno Hosomichi aka The Wabisabi Clairvoyant. 14 years. 1.58 kilograms below the ideal weight, 5 centimeters below the ideal height. Perfect health record, top in Sector 2B. Well, Nosaka-Kun?"

Okuno raised his head and looked at the vermillion-haired boy before him with his empty eyes. He was slim and pale, eyes void of any light, and gave a flat smile.

"I can see why he was chosen to be put on the team," the light yet intimidating voice hummed, as if he were playing a game.

This was the last thing from a game for the boy who wanted perfection.

"Who are you?" he asked monotonously , though his eyes were glaring at the redhead.

"Nosaka Yuuma, captain of Outei Tsukinomiya soccer club. Your captain," the man replied in his stead, silently saying there was no debate for this.

"Nosaka Yuuma-San...?" Okuno spat, completely insincere with the honorifics. He who had been working so hard to be perfect, was to be ordered by one who was simply "playing around"? Outrageous.

"Okuno-Kun," Nosaka said. Gray eyes met even grayer ones. Ones with still a hint of emotion against ones with none at all. "Why join the Ares program?"

Okuno raised his eyebrow, contemplating whether he was serious about his question. There was no point in telling him, someone who's just playing, his reason for joining.

"For your family?"

Silence.

"For your community?"

Nothing.

"For yourself?"

A twitch.

"Though we all know that those who join strive for a point of _perfection_ ,"

The dulled boy immediately jolted upward, eyes aflame with his frustration.

"And have you reached that point?" he hissed.

"No where close to it, I'm afraid," the void of his eyes pierced into Okuno's fiery ones, immediately putting it out. "I can't change the world yet."

"Change... the world?"

"An ideal of mine," Nosaka chuckled, and put out his hand; an offer to him. Okuno recoiled, though the idea was tempting. "Do you wish to see it change?"

Okuno's world certainly did.

 _Stronger._

Outei Tsukinomiya, though silent, dominated the junior soccer world, crushing one school at a time. Okuno enjoyed this, to be on top. It made him feel accomplishment, that his hard work had been for something.

 _Emotionless._

They called their tactics cruel. Vicious. Inhumane. But Outei Tsukinomiya paid no mind, all that mattered was that their goal was a step closer.

Okuno felt nothing, sending players flying off the field or kicking a ball too hard in their direction. None of that mattered to him.

The strong had to filter out the weak after all.

 _Lost._

But what direction was this going? Was this the perfection he was striving for? He was so focused on aiming for perfection, that he had forgotten.

What did it mean to be perfect?

 _Light._

Then came the Football Frontier. It was going to be like the usual, information gathering, winning and repeating. Nothing different.

But it was.

"Inakuni Raimon, a new contender to the football frontier. Shooting 78, dribbling 69, stamina..." stats were read out by the AI. All average and yet, they had whizzed through the regional blocks and even beaten the previous champion, Seishou Academy. Something was not right.

So they watched the previous matches, from their defeating debut against Seishou, up till the regional finals.

Okuno refuses to believe his eyes. Pure luck, was his mindset in the first few matches. The coach is simply good at strategies, he discovered in the next few.

Yet, as he continued to watch, he felt an ache, a yearning. They were amateurs, with no special known ability like Seishou or Kidokawa. Why were Raimon the chosen ones then?

 _Fun._

As training continues, Outei began to notice things they usually ignored.

"Hey Okuno, check this out," Kusaka would whisper sometimes, to show off a neat trick he had developed on his own.

"Okuno, what if we tried doing our own things without a plan?" Tanizaki would mumble sometimes.

"Are we really alright with this style of playing? Is it... right to be following the Ares program?"

Okuno would yell in his room at night. In frustration, in happiness, in anticipation? Everything was becoming confusing for him. Was he discarding his perfect self? Was he evolving beyond the limits of the Ares program?

The answer was so much simpler; he just wanted to feel again.

 _Hope._

That's when they started discussing amongst themselves, away from the eyes of supervisors, away from adults. What they were doing wasn't right, they were being trained to be robots, not evolved versions of themselves.

"Nosaka-San," they confronted their captain after a Raimon match. They were sure he must had noticed: the magic behind Raimon's soccer.

And so they were promised. A promise of freedom. A promise of an imperfect life. A promise that would make them human again.

 _Serendipity._

Fresh air. Bright blue skies. Fluttering clouds. Oh how he had missed those. The times when life had colour, when nature's music would play and everything felt free.

He had regained those. He learned to laugh again, to cry again, to have emotions again. All in exchange for his idea of perfection.

"Ah! Nii-San, could you help with our ball?" A small voice cried.

Okuno Hosomichi's navy blue hair blew in the winds, entangled into a ponytail with a single braid. Ocean eyes met large teal eyes, as he passed back a soccer ball to a tiny pink haired boy with precision.

"Woah that was amazing! Do you play soccer too?" the little boy asked, in awe by Okuno's skills. He felt warmth arise from hearing the boy's words, this cute boy with tiny pigtails. "Teach me how to play perfectly!"

The words struck Okuno deeply. He used to aim for such a goal, so blinded by it he forgot what living was truly like.

So he chuckled, bent to the boy's height and pat his head.

"Perfect doesn't exist as a general idea, perfect is what you do from your heart. As long as you're happy with the way you're playing, you're as 'perfect' as you can be," he smiled.

"I don't get it," the teal eyed boy replied. "So what is perfect?"

"Ranmaru! Let's go!" A voice called out.

The boy looked at Okuno earnestly, still expecting an answer. Reminded of himself, all he could say was, "You'll figure it out. You can do it." and pet his head.

"Okuno! Nosaka-San called! He's going to tell us of his trip to America and about Inazuma Japan!" Kusaka called for him, teal hair announcing his presence.

"Coming!" he replied and elegantly made his way over.

It was hard, to discard the 'perfect' life he had worked so hard for. To put away his memories of power. However, after he did so, he realised 'perfect' wasn't so far after all. A perfect life didn't mean one had to be the strongest, to be the most influential, or the most genius. A perfect life was just a happy life, facing obstacles, crying and laughing with friends and being yourself.

And if that was what perfection was, Okuno Hosomichi had long achieved his goal.


End file.
